Mazzaglia was talented theater student at UNH

DOVER — Years before he met Elizabeth Marriott, the woman he’s now on trial for killing, Seth Mazzaglia was a brooding college student adjusting to life at the University of New Hampshire.

“He had his ups and downs while he was here, not unlike many students,” Prof. David Kaye, who chairs the UNH Theater Department, said in an e-mail. “He was very moody when he transferred to UNH, but by the time he graduated, he really struck me as having matured a great deal, and he appeared to be a far more positive person.”

He showed promise as a fight choreographer while studying theater at the University of New Hampshire and was encouraged by his professors to pursue work in that field. He also was an aspiring actor and playwright. He graduated in 2006 after majoring in theater.

“Because of his martial arts background I encouraged him to consider getting specialized training in stage combat and fight choreography, which he did,” Kaye said. “He became very enthusiastic about the field and showed a great deal of talent for it.”

Mazzaglia, now 31, is charged with first-degree murder in the October of 2012 killing of Marriott, a UNH sophomore. Their paths crossed when Kathryn McDonough, his girlfriend at the time, invited Marriott to Mazzaglia’s Dover apartment.

Mazzaglia has been jailed since his arrest a few days after Marriott disappeared.

What happened next has been discussed at length during the closely watched trial at the Strafford County Courthouse, which began nearly three weeks ago. McDonough has described the strangulation killing and rape afterward of Marriott by Mazzaglia while the three were watching a movie.

McDonough, who reached a plea agreement with state prosecutors last year and is serving a 1½- to 3-year sentence, is the state’s star witness against Mazzaglia.

After Marriott was killed, prosecutors say Mazzaglia dumped her nearly naked body off Peirce Island in Portsmouth. It has never been found.

Mazzaglia grew up in Portsmouth and was an accomplished karate student by the time he graduated from Berwick Academy in South Berwick, Maine, in 2001.

Mazzaglia’s personal website, which was taken down shortly after his arrest, indicated he was a third-degree black belt in Okinawan karate and skilled with various swords. The site listed juggling and flexibility among his talents and said he also was certificated in massage therapy.

Robert Modee, a Kittery, Maine, martial arts instructor, told Foster’s in 2012 that Mazzaglia began karate training when he was 10 or 12 years old.

Mazzaglia also gave martial arts lessons at the Kittery Community Center for a time. The center’s director declined to comment on Mazzaglia last week and refused to share details about his employment there.

As has been noted during trial, Mazzaglia worked at Best Buy in Newington. State police investigators picked him up from there before a marathon interview session, parts of which were thrown out after a judge ruled Mazzaglia was not properly issued his Miranda rights.

A Best Buy spokesman declined to comment on Mazzaglia’s time with the company.

Mazzaglia acted in numerous local productions between 2000 and 2010, including plays at the Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Portsmouth Music Hall and Rochester Opera House. Some of his most recent work was with the Garrison Players in Rollinsford.

He also acted in shows at Prescott Park, including a 2008 performance of “Beauty and the Beast” where he directed the fight scenes. Prescott Park is located within walking distance from Peirce Island.

“I expected him to gravitate toward film — particularly in the area of stunts and, as I mentioned, possibly as a fight choreographer — but he ended up staying in the area and putting together a living by cobbling together a number of different jobs, in and out of the arts,” said Kaye, the UNH professor.

Mazzaglia was certified in New Hampshire as an emergency medical technician, or EMT, from 2002 to 2004. After those credentials lapsed, he obtained his certification again in 2012, according to Nick Mercuri, the chief of the state’s Bureau of Emergency Medical Services. There is no record that Mazzaglia was ever licensed to work as an EMT, which is required in New Hampshire.

Attempts Thursday and Friday to reach Mazzaglia’s parents were not successful. His mother, who works for a local school system, declined to comment through an attorney.

The Mazzaglia trial is expected to continue for at least two more weeks. He faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole.